Flying-machine.



T. A. TANNER.

' FLYING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED 1312021, 1910.

Patented Sept. 3, 1912.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

3% uentoz T. A. TANNE R.

FLYING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED 1730.21, 1910.

Patented. Sept. 3, 1912 3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

' ,3 wuemtoz GUM/nu T. A. TANNER.

FLYING MACHINE.

APPLIOATION FILED DEC. 21, 1910.

1,037,804, mama Sept. 3,1912

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

UNITED STATES PATENT o TBAUGO'I'TE A. TANNER, or rLm'r, MICHIGAN,ASSIGNOR or ONE-HALF TO mama FRANKLIN MILLER, JR., OF FLINT, MICHIGAH. g

' FLYING-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Sept. 3,1912.

Application filed December 21', 1910. Serial No. 598,511. r v

To all whom it may conccm:

Be it known that I, TRAUGOTTE A. TaN NER, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Flint, in the county of Genesee and State ofMichigan, have invent-ed new and useful Improvements in Flying-Machines,of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to flying machines, and particularly to means forcontrolling and maintaining the lateral balance of such machines, themain object of the invention being to provide novelgyroscopically-operated means for actuating balancing devices, wherebyan automatic balancing action will be secured. i

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel construction ofgyroscope and drive gearing therefor, and means for throwing saidgearing into and out of action at will.

With these and other objects in view, the nature of which will morefully appear as the description proceeds, the invention consists of thefeatures of construction, combination and arrangement of devices,hercinafter fully described and claimed, reference being had totheaccompanying drawings, in which 1 I,

Figure l is a vertical longitudinal section of the machine on the linel1 of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 isa sectional plan view on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2. Fig.4 is an enlarged vertical transverse section on the line 4.4 of Fig. 2.Fig. 5 is a front elevation, with the front part of the casing brokenaway, of the gyroscope. Fig. 6 is an enlarged vertical transversesection of the same on the line 66 of Fig. 7. Fig. 7 is an enlarged foreand aft section of the same on the line 7-7 of Fig. 5-.

In the accompanying drawings, I have illustrated my invention as appliedto a conventionaltype of biplane machine, although 45 .it is to beunderstood that it may be applied in suitable form to monoplanes andmultiplan es generally.

1 in the drawings designates the frame of the machine and 2 and 3 theupper and lower supporting surfaces. Arranged at the front of the frameon opposite sides of the longitudinal center thereof are propellers 4mounted on shafts 5 rovided with beveled gears 6 which mesh with gears 7on a the machine is in flight.

transversely extending drive shaft 8, which shaft is connected by bevelgears 9 and 10 with a vertical transmission shaftll, which shaft isdriven by intermeshing bevel gears 12 from the shaft of the motor 13.

The controlling mechanism comprises a gyroscope 14: mountedupon theframe and embodying a frame ring 15 fitting within an outer channeledsupporting member 16,

composed of upper and lower sections suitably united to permit of theapplication and removal of the ring. The member 16 is arrangedvertically upon the frame and extends transversely thereof or at rightangles to the line of flight and 'is provided at its sides withtrunnions 17'journaled in bearings 17 which pivotallyconnect'thegyroscope as a whole with the machine, by which the latter ispermitted to tiltin a fore and aft direction without affecting thegyroscope.

The ring 15 corresponds in arrangement,

relative to the frame, with the member 116, and the latter is adapted,as the machine tilts laterally in one direction 'or the other to turn orpivot on said member 16,*which latter is held from motion in theope'rat'ioir of the machine by the action of the rotary member of thegyroscope. This rotary member comprises a vertical shaft 18'journaled atits lower end in an antifriction bearing 19 at the base of the ringand'at its upper end in an antifriction bearing sleeve 20 disposedat-the top of the ring, which shaft carries a horizontally arrangedgyroscope wheel or disk 21 arranged to rotate between the sides of thering and within a suitable inclosing casing composed of sections 23 and24 respectively carried by the ring and channeled supporting member.This casing protectsthe gyroscope wheel from the entrance of dust andother foreign particles and from any other disturbing in fluence, suchas the action of the wind when The shaft18 is driven from the propellerdrive shaf 8 by a flexible shaft 25, which is journaled at end in abearing yoke 26 and provided with a beveled fl'lCtlOIl gear 27 drivenfrom a bevel gear 28 on said shaft 8, the opposite or lower end of theflexible shaft being provided with a clutch member coupled forthetransmission of motion from a one to the other, the friction gearingbeing proportioned to rotate the gyroscope wheel at a desired-high rateof speed. The clutch member 29 is provided with an annularly groovedcollar engaged by pins on the arms of'a fork 31 forming part of a bellcrank shipper lever 32, by which said clutch member may be adjusted intoand out of engagenient with the clutch member 30, said lever beingprovided with a spring-actuated pawl or dog 33 adapted to interlock witha rack 34 forming part of the collar or ring 15, by which said clutchmember 29 may be held fixed in adjusted position.

The gyroscope is adapted on. the lateral tilting of the vessel in onedirection or the other to control balancing devices, whereby the balanceof the machine will be automatically restored. These balancing devicesare shown in the present instance in the form of ailerons or balancingplanes 35 arranged between the lateral extremities ofthe supportingsurfaces 2 and 3, but may be of any other desired-form, constructlon.and arran ment suitable for the purpose,

.the-inventlon contemplating in this particular the use of balancingmediums of any of the types commonly used, includingjbalancing planes orailerons, warping tips or any other of the elements commonly employedfor the purpose.

In the present instance I have disclosed the use of ailerons ofelliptical form and 'havin their major axes arranged normally at rig tangles to the line of flight, said ailerons being rigidly mounted uponvert1* cal shafts 36 at a normal angle of about 15 to the horizontal,the normally inner end a of each aileron being at a higher level thanthe outer end a thereof, each aileron thus extending at an outward anddownward inclination and at a negative angle of incidence. The shafts 36are respectively provided with forwardly and rearwardly projecting crankarms 37 and 38, the crank arm' 37 ofone shaft and the crank arm 38 ofthe other shaft being connected by wires or cables 39 to some suitableportion of the gyroscope member 15, as the sleeve 20, while the othertwo crank arms 37 and 38 of said shafts are coupled to each'other by awire or cable 40, the construction being such as to simultaneouslyeifect a movement of the ailerons in reverse directions upon the tiltingof the machine in either direction.

It will thus be-eunderstoodthat when the machine is inflight the rapidmotion of the gyroscope wheel will maintain the fixed member 15"of thegyroscope in a perpendicular position irrespective of the tilting motionof the machine in either general direction, and that the machine maytilt inv a fore and aft direction without influencing the gyroscope 'orthe connections leadi'ngto the ailerons. If, however, the machine shouldtilt laterally in one direction, the maintenance of the gyroscope member15 and shaft 18 in normal position will result in a relative tiltingmotion between the machine and said gyroscope member, by which theconnection 39 leading to' the aileron shaft at the elevated side of themachine will be drawn upon and the other connection 39 sla-ckened toswing the end a .of the aileron at the high side rearwardly andcorrespondingly swing the end a of aileron at the depressed sideforwardly, thus respectively decreasing and increasing the angle ofincidence of said ailerons to restore the balance of the machine in thewell-known way. When the machine tilts laterally in the oppositedirection, a reverse adjustment of the ailerons occurs, as will bereadily understood, whereby the machine will similarly be restored tonormal position. Hence, at all times when the machine is in flight thelateral balance will be automatically preserved, obviating the necessityof manual control for the purpose. When in the operation of landing themachine, or in the act of gliding, the propelling power is out ed, theclutch mechanism may be disconnected to' free the gyroscope shaft fromthe flexible shaft, allowing the gyroscope wheel to revolve by momentumto automatically maintain control over the lateral balance until alanding is made.

Having thus described the invention, I-

journaled in said second ring, a gyroscope wheel carried by said shaft,a propeller shaft, a driving motor in gear therewith,

a flexible shaft in gear at one end with said propeller shaft, a clutchdevice for connect- .ing the opposite end of said flexible shaft withthe gyroscope shaft, means mounted upon the said second ring forthrowing said clutch device into and out of'action, and balancingdevices controlled by the turning movement of the second ring.

2. In a flying machine, the combination of a gliding structure, achanneled ring mounted to tilt in a fore and aft direction upon thegliding structure, a second ring mounted to turn in a transversedirection in said channeled ring, agyroscope wheel Ynounted upon saidshaft to rotate within the second ring,atwo-part casing securedto thechan neled ring and inclosing the gyroscope wheel .andthe major portionof the shaft, a bracket supported by the second ring and carrying atoothed rack, a propeller shaft a driving motor in gear therewith, aflexible shaft in with saidlpropeller shaft; by the turningmovomefioS'of he-said sec a gllitch fivicd'for connecting thooppositeondying.

endjofsaid propeller shaft with the' gyro- In testimony whereof I afilxmy signature ",sco'pe; shoft iaflever' mounted upon the in presence oftwo witnesses.- I

5 bracket f0r'tli-1 owihg said clutch device into TRAUGOTTE A. TANNER.and (out of operation, said lever being provWitnesses:

wided with adog to engage said rack, and v BURTIS E. WOOLFITT,

i balancil lg-devices coupled to and controlled B. F'. MILU'JR, Jr.

06')! a! thin pliant mpybe obtained for live 'cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Intent 4 g p o v u

